Saturday, October 29, 2005
Letter to Jay - 1:32 AM
Note: VERY, VERY long post. haha
*November's Chopin. Have you ordered it yet?*Dear Jielun,
First of all, do you mind me calling you Jielun like how your friends and family do? Well, I'm not delusional. I know we're not friends (duh. in fact, we're as far to being friends as you can imagine), but after all, a wise man once said that strangers are merely friends you haven't met, and so I figured...
Anyway, your new album 'Shi2 yi1 yue4 de Xiao1 Bang1' (aka November's Chopin) is releasing worldwide on 1st November 2005, and I thought that presented a great opportunity to write about you even though the chance of you reading this is 1 in a million, because 1) you don't have time to surf blogs, 2) even if you do, there is hardly any chance of mine being the chosen one, 3) you can't read english. (OOPS, I'm sorry if I had insulted you...but aiyah, your talent itself surpasses language barriers). You see Jielun, great composers like yourself are not limited to using words to express your thoughts. Music itself possesses the ability to transcend words... and the great thing about it is you the listener gets to choose the state of mind which you want to be in. Unlike books and movies where we feel obliged to feel sadness when we see tragedy, joy when we see sunshine and flowers... music is purely objective. A song that fascinates a listener might not satisfy the next, and with music, anything goes. Even without words, music is able to move one to tears. But of cos, since that genre of music belong to the Classical masters while yours is more of POP-RNB, lyrics are of cos, still necessary. And MTVS exist as a (other than letting you act until shuang) storytelling device. In your pictorial book, 'Grandeur in D', in response to critics who blasted you for your 'vague mumbling words', you said 'My music is not all about the words. The overall picture ought to be painted by the person listening to it, not imposed by the composer who wrote it. If the words and ideas were put across so clearly, there will be no room left for imagination.' How true, Jielun, how true...
I was first introduced to your music when my cousin Chloe went berserk listening to your first album. My uncle commented 'how can anyone sing a song with the chorus made up of his own name?!! (wan mei zhu yi)' At that time, I went along with him 'YAH wad a narcissist!' (cos I wanted to piss Chloe off). But now I understand that every artiste has to be at, or at least near your level of confidence and narcissism. It is only then that you are able to proclaim, 'Look out, World, cos I am the best!' That is the only way to differentiate yourself amongst all the other wannabes out there. As a matter of fact, I think that that should not just be applicable to artistes. I bet that even the most ordinary person has a shot at becoming extraordinary if s/he harbored such ideals. Of cos, ideals have to be coupled with some substance to make the equation balance. To be the best that you can be...hmm? Inspiring, don't you think?
I still remember Chloe attending your FANTASY concert in Singapore at the EXPO, and how the entire audience urged you to remove your jacket (ala shi jie mo ri mtv) and how my stupid junior Kershia went to your concert not cos she liked you, but cos she wanted to catch a glimpse of your mentor, JACKY WU. (wth kershia?! I still can't believe you did that!). I still remember you only receiving the silver award for Best Newcomer at the Taiwan Music Awards, losing the gold to Singapore's very own Stephanie Sun. 5 years later, both of you are the King and Queen of Chinese music respectively.
I didn't attend any of your concerts in Singapore because....because...ok there is NO excuse for my behavior. I was just plain stupid and broke I guess. Shellen bought me your 'THE ONE concert' DVD for Christmas 2002, which I played on CNY's night 2003 in a desperate bid to entertain the teenage guests who were unwillingly towed by their parents to visit. We sat throughout the entire DVD without a single -pause- . I don't know about them, but I was mesmerized by your stage presence. It was then that I thought 'if this is ONLY thru dvd, can you imagine the REAL thing?' and promised to go to your next concert if possible.
When I came over to the States, I found out that you were gonna hold your 'WU YU LUN BI' concert in LA during our winter break!! What's more, Ruoxi, Ruoyi, Dawn, Chloe and I had already decided before that that we were to tour the west coast during the holz! Wad PERFECT timing!! Thus, all of us PLUS your NUMBER 1 FAN, Amanda all jetsetted down to LA in Dec 2004. Though we were surround by the glamor of Hollywood, beautiful beaches and great Japanese food, your concert remained number 1 on our agenda. Because of your concert, we had to switch hotels twice within LA alone just to be closer to the venue. I made my friend Peirui, (who was studying in LA at that time) who knew barely anything about you so juiced about your concert that she searched for an extra ticket to see you at the very last moment. Although the tickets were extremely expensive, it was all worth it because you blew us away.
Do you remember coming down to shake hands with the crowd because the concert was held in a much more intimate setting of a concert hall rather than a 100 000 seater stadium? DAMN we could not afford the US$300 front row seats and had to watch other crazy fans jostle with you down below, wishing we were there as well. (we were at the fricking balcony btw). Poor Amanda would have had a higher chance of getting nearer to you if she hadn't sprained her ankle 5hours prior to the concert and had to hobble pitifully while others swarmed towards you...And what about that stuuuupid girl in the Sailormoon outfit who rushed on stage and hugged you while you stood there dumbfounded as if wondering WHERE's MY SECURITY PEOPLE?! And how you threw your shuang-jie-gun into the crowd towards the end? I don't know whether it hit anyone (ouch if it did), but HELL I wouldn't mind having a slightly concussed head if I could have a memorabilia of your concert to keep for the rest of my life! Your concert ended that night, but the memories of all of us (who are scattered all over the world now) attending your concert that fateful holiday will remain forever.
After your concert, I realised I didn't know much about your music! How can I call myself a true fan when I hardly know the lyrics to any of your songs? It was after that that I bought your pictorial book, concert dvds, and had Amanda send me ALL your mtvs clips. I made her send me your Kang Xi Lai Le interviews as well. In it, you said that your favourite MTV so far is 'Yi Fu Zhi Ming' (in the name of the Father) where you played an assassin in Italy. Yes, that is my favourite MTV too. Digressing a little, I think you should also continue to choose Ang Moh girls instead of Chinese girls in your MTVS, cos that way, your Chinese female fans won't get so jealous mah. Dui mah?
From the KXLL interview, I also found out that you neither drink, smoke nor dance. (cos you look v 'chou3' when you dance). You don't visit nightspots cos you're shy in nature and since you don't do the 3 activities mentioned above, you don't have much reason to go. BOY, JIELUN...you have NO idea how MUCH WE HAVE IN COMMON! Those video clips were played repeatedly during our Taiwan trip while I was in the room with Cllo and Shiyun. Cracked all of us up I tell you...(Oh oh, did you know that Chopin's my favourite composer as well? OK, I hated him at first cos I was forced to play and perform a 22-page Scherzo piece of his and I blamed him for being so long-winded and so tough on technicalities...but then I slowly learnt to relish his works and have since picked up a few other pieces of his) This summer, you also released your first movie, INITIAL D!! While it was interesting to see you for a whole 1+-2 hrs on the giant screen, ummmm... I think music is still your forte. HAHAHA.
I learnt that you are an extremely filial son and grandson to your mom and ah-mah. Your ah mah is adorable! She even cameoed in your 'Wai Po' MTV!! She looks and behaves like just any granny out there, and not the granny of THE Jay Chou. Yes indeed, filial piety is a value everyone speaks of incessantly but is hardly fulfilled in today's materialistic world. It's extremely gratifying to see that you're not afraid to admit to being a Mommy's Boy and that your Oriental values are deeply engraved in you despite being the tremendous success you are today.
Jielun, I want to thank you for creating so much wonderful music for me as well as the millions out there who listen to you. Although you have your detractors, who doesn't? Even normal beings like us have the occasional enemy who hates us and whom we equally loathe, what more a mega-superstar like yourself? Your music has accompanied me through many train/plane rides as well as lonely nights in my dorm room. When I'm bored, I'll whisk out your concert DVD and envision myself amongst the sea of faces, praying for the next time when I can attend another of your amazing concerts. We have, as much as you, grown with your music, Jielun...Me, from being an adolescent to a young adult and you, from the awkward musician trying to find your place, to being labelled as the 'God of Chinese Music' and of course, everyone else who has developed in one way or another.
So on this night, 3 days before your CD is released, I will like to dedicate this entry to you, as well as all your adoring fans out there. Many people will probably not read past the 3rd line because they are not interested in reading about you, but HECK them because I didn't write this for them. One day, you will definitely inch closer to attaining your dream of promoting Chinese music to the world. Even if you don't succeed in doing so, oh well, you have got yourself about 319572680 fans... That's not too bad for someone who did not even dream of being a celebrity, don't you think? Thank you, Jielun (as well as a few others out there) for letting us know that today's music industry still believes in the very thing they allegedly endorse- good music.
Jielun, I wish you good health along with all the inspiration you need in creating even more great music. Remember, ni3 shi4 zui4 DIAO3 de!!
Love,
Ruoying
29th November 2005
*happy birthday to Chloe who turns 17!*